40k Gamers Dictionary

By Viscount Vash and the Astronomican community at large

A rough guide to gaming slang, abbreviations and terminology.

If you think anything is missing post it in the discussion thread!

A                                    Attacks.  

AP                                  Armour penetration, whether a hit allows an armour save, ie AP3 SV3 = no

                                       save.  

Astro                              The best multi-race 40k forum on line.  

BA                                  Blood Angels.

BT                                   Black Templars. 

Beardy                            Unbalanced armies or style of play using the rules to power game but

                                        straying from the fluff. Visually represented by stroking one's chin at 

                                        your opponent.  

Beard                              An imaginary visual reference to the level of someone's power gaming,

                                        ie Sorry, did I step on your beard? (see Beardy)

BFG                                 No not what you might think, its Battle Fleet Gothic.

BS                                   Ballistic skill, determines how effective a model is at shooting based

                                        attacks.

Bugs                                Tyranids. 

Canned Food                   Space Marines or powered armoured models.

cc                                    Close combat. 

ccw                                 Close combat weapon.

Chap                                Space Marine Chaplian. (Also chappy.)

Crons                               Necrons.

CSM                                 Chaos Space Marines. 

DA                                    Dark Angels.

DC                                    Death Company, Blood Angels specialist troops.

DE                                     Dark Eldar.

DH                                    Daemon Hunters.

Dice Gods                        The strange Powers that effect every die roll.

Dicelobba                         Player who clatters the die of your nicely painted models.  

Elastic tape measure        Special wargear item of players who like to go that extra inch or four.  

Exterminatus                    Completely destroyed, annihilated, usually issued as a threat/intention of

                                         purpose by imperial players.

Fish                                  Tau .

Fist full of ones                Multiple fumbles.

Flashlight                          Lasgun.    

Fluff                                 Story or background information.

FOC                                 Force Organization Chart. 

FoF                                  Fish of Fury: a tactic used by mecha-tau players, involving

                                        devilfishes  stuffed with firewarriors. 

Fragged                           Destroyed, ruined.  

Fumble                            To roll a one on a D6 when anything else will do.  

FW                                  Forge World.

GK                                  Grey Knights

GW                                 Games Workshop.  

hb                                   Heavy bolter.  

I                                       Initiative, the speed of a model's attack used to determine striking order of

                                       attacks.

IF                                     Imperial Fists  

IG                                    Imperial Guard.

IMO                                  In My Opinion. 

Invulnerable Save           Armour save that is always usable unless otherwise stated in the rules.

Ionhead                           Tau Hammerhead tank armed with Ion Cannon. 

IW                                    Iron Warriors.

KoS                                 Kult of Speed.  

LatD                                Lost and the Damned.  

LD                                   Leadership, used to determine the courage of models.

Libby                               Librarian

List Monster                    Player who probably spends more time writing up killer army lists than 

                                       playing the game.

MEQ                                Marine EQuivalent, any model with a 3+ Sv (Plasma fodder).

MoCU                              Mark of Chaos Undivided.

Nids                                Tyranids.

nmm                                Non metallic metals (metal painted using....) 

Papa SMurf                     Marneus Calgar.

Pie plate                          Large template.

pf                                     Power Fist. 

Pointy eared scum          Anything Eldar, Dark Eldar.

Puppies                           Space Wolves.

pw                                  Power weapon, weapon allowing no amour save.

Railhead                          Tau Hammerhead tank armed with Railgun.

RAW                               Rules As Written. Sticking to the letter of the rules sometimes to the  

                                       detriment of the game. 

RP                                   Role Play.

RPG                                Role Playing Game. 

S                                     Strength, how hard an attack/shot hits a model.

Skinnies                          Eldar.  

SM                                   Space Marine.

SMurf                              Space Marines of the Ultramarines chapter.   

Snotlings                         Usually players who are under the recommended playing age. (I once

                                       caught one pushing my predator around and making the sound effects.)

Space Puppy                  Space Wolf.

Stunti                              Squats, Dewar.  

SV                                  Armour save, what a model needs to roll to save an incoming hit.  

SW                                 Space Wolves.  

T                                    Toughness, determines how hard a model needs to be hit.  

Tin Boy                           A player who plays with an unpainted army and never makes much

                                       progress in the area. Dates from the mainly metal mini eras.  

Torch                              Lasgun.

Treadhead                      Player who has a lust for Armoured vehicles (most commenly found

                                       among Guard players).

UM                                  Ultra Marines 

W                                    Wounds, determines how many times a model needs to be hit.

WE                                 Worldeaters 

WBB                               We'll Be Back, Necron speical rule. 

WD                                 White Dwarf, Games Workshops monthly magazine.

WH                                 Witch Hunters. 

WiP                                 Work in Progress.

WS                                  Weapon skill, determines how effective a model is in close combat.

WYSIWYG                      What You See Is What You Get (wizzywig) the models are equipped as

                                        seen.

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